Initially it seemed as though there was a good environmental story coming out today.

After 30 years of being classified as an endangered species, wood storks were no longer in danger of extinction and were being reclassified as a threatened species by the U.S.Fish and Wildlife Service..

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has announced this large wetlands forager, which is a common sight in some parts of Polk County, said the rationale for the pending decision was a significant increase in numbers overall and the existence of seemingly stable colonies in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina.

But within hours of the announcement, Audubon sent out its own announcement alleging USFWS officials were too optimistic and that serious threats continue to confront these birds. They threw in climate change, which could eventually force the birds to abandon rookeries in coastal refuges in Georgia and South Carolina

The idea behind the Endangered Species Act has always been to come up with ways to reduce the extinction threat to all listed species. Some recovery plans have been more successful than others and downlisted and delisting proposals are always controversial .

At the time these birds were listed as endangered, they were much less numerous and their breeding range was pretty well restricted to central and south Florida.

Audubon, which owns and manages Corkscrew Sanctuary in south Florida, where they say the birds are still in trouble there because of the loss of shallow wetlands habitat in that part of Florida.

The evidence seems to show storks are gradually abandoning the Everglades area where they historically nested and moving to areas farther north, including Polk County.

One of the most important Florida rookeries is in Polk County on Lake Somerset, where city officials have agreed to afford more protection to the nesting grounds from harassment by boaters and aggressive commercial wildlife photographers.

However, one of the unanswered questions is how successful the nesting colonies in Georgia and South Carolina are in producing young that will survive to breeding age and continue to produce more storks to keep the population sustainable.

These issues will likely be addressed in a revised recovery plan for wood storks.

Even with the change in listing, the birds are still protected and will continue to be protected, like all non-game species, even if someday they are no longer listed under the ESA.

About This Blog

Tom Palmer is a native Floridian who has spent decades exploring and getting to know Florida’s natural areas and becoming familiar with the diversity of wildlife in the state. He is an avid birdwatcher and butterfly watcher. He also has assisted in many land stewardship projects and occasionally has time to slip into his kayak and explore some more.